1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices and method for controlling wrapping of a blood pressure measurement cuff including a bladder around a region for measurement of a living body. More particularly, the present invention relates to blood pressure measurement cuff wrapping control devices and method for making the strength of wrapping around the region for measurement to be appropriate.
2. Description of the Background Art
In conventional electronic blood pressure measurement devices, a measurement cuff including a bladder is wrapped around a region for measurement of a living body in advance for blood pressure measurements. However, the strength of wrapping, namely the degree of pressurization on the living body caused by the wrapping, has not been grasped, thereby making it difficult to prescribe a proper wrapping strength. In order to overcome the problem, there has been suggested, for example, a method disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 6-237906. This publication discloses a configuration for enclosing gas within a bladder, in advance, and then wrapping it around a region for measurement. Further, the publication prescribes that a proper wrapping condition has been achieved when the pressure of gas within the bladder reaches a predetermined pressure.
However, with the configuration disclosed in this publication, in the case where the amount of air enclosed within the bladder or the size of the bladder is changed, this will change the pressure applied to the artery in the region for measurement and therefore the predetermined pressure must be altered to a proper pressure in association therewith.
Further, since the same preset pressure is applied to all subjects for blood pressure measurement, there has been inconvenience that, even when it is determined that a proper wrapping condition is achieved, the setting of wrapping will be tight for subjects having a thicker arm which is the region for measurement, while it will be loose for subjects having a thinner arm. Also, in the case where the measurement cuff is to be manually wrapped around the region for measurement, the subject can not know the required wrapping strength (the pressurization level), thus preventing proper blood pressure measurements.